Otis Fixtures

Editors' Note

There is a lot of inconsistency with the names of Otis's newer fixtures, and this has been subject to much debate in the elevator enthusiast community in recent years. We Guide editors have done some research, examining some Otis documents from over the years, and haven't found very many conclusive answers regarding which "series number" names correspond to which fixtures, but we have found that many 2000s Otis fixtures were officially known by other names. We rewrote much of this page in January 2022 to reflect these findings. Our understanding of Otis's modern fixtures differs substantially from the terms commonly used in the community.

The terms Series 2, Series 3, Series 4, Series 5, Series 6, Series 7, and Newer Series 2 are used on this page only in reference to their common usage in the community. The editors of the North American Elevator Guide no longer recognize these as official names of Otis fixtures.

1940s-70s black buttons

These were used as early as the 1940s. They were replaced by the illuminating black buttons for floor selection buttons in the late 1960s, but remained in use for door control buttons through the early 1980s. These came in two forms - the newer buttons

Operating panel with newer buttons
Newer (left) and older (right) versions
Indicator commonly used with these buttons
Older call station with rotodial indicator

Touch sensitive

These were made during the 1950s and 60s, and are triggered by vacuum tubes when touched. Square and circle variants exist, plus an arrow-shaped button that was only used on call stations. Touch buttons generally use the same indicators as the 1940s-70s black buttons, and have said buttons on their operating panels for alarms and door controls.

Square touch sensor
Operating panel with square touch sensor
Circle touch operating panel
Square touch call station

Black buttons with halos
(1968-1982)

This is a relatively rare Otis fixture mostly found on 1970s elevators. Its buttons are made of Lexan plastic, and as such are commonly called Lexan by elevator enthusiasts. Most elevators with these buttons have older black buttons for their door controls.

Button close-up
Operating panel
Analog indicator commonly used with these buttons

White variant

There is a very rare variant of the original black buttons with halos, with white buttons instead of black. Very few of these still remain.

White black buttons with red lighted halos

Black buttons with halos
(1979-1990)

The second generation of these fixtures are custom GAL buttons. They are set further into the illuminating halo than the original version. These were introduced in the late 1970s, and discontinued in 1990. They are often paired with Series 1-style indicators.

Newer variant operating panelphoto: ExcelElevations 4U
Newer variant close-upphoto: ExcelElevations 4U

Vanity

This rare 1980s-1990s Otis fixture consists of a white GAL Jet Plus button without a halo, and indicators similar to Series 1. There is also a smaller version about the size of a dime.

Standard Vanity operating panel
Smaller Vanity buttonsphoto: ExcelElevations 4U

Series 1 (1981-1993)

Series 1 is the most common Otis fixture, and among the most common elevator fixtures in the United States. Its original version was introduced in 1981.

Its buttons are white squares that light up when pressed. Standard hydraulic Series 1 panels are two buttons wide, with the position indicator pointed down. Traction Series 1 panels are three buttons wide, with the indicator angled down and the bottom twelve buttons angled up.

Early Series 1 usually has a red or green analog position indicator (shown in red) for six floors or fewer. For more than six floors or any traction elevators, a green vacuum fluorescent sixteen segment display is used.

Series 1 almost always comes with digital LED arrow lanterns, usually in green, but sometimes in red, or very rarely in orange.

Some early Series 1 installations will have the floor buttons mounted up higher in the COP, making them non-ADA compliant.

Older series 1 hydraulic operating panel
Call station with integrated position indicator (green)
Older series 1 analog indicator (red)
Series 1 car lantern (green)

Series 1 (1994-2005)

Series 1 was updated in 1994 with new buttons. The newer buttons stick out farther and have different switches. Hydraulic lifts' panels were still usually two buttons wide, and traction panels three buttons wide, though there are some that don't follow this pattern. The green digital lantern and vacuum fluorescent display were used on almost all newer Series 1s, however, a few mid-1990s examples have red digital displays.

Newer hydraulic operating panel
Traction operating panel
Traction series 1 indicator and car lantern
Newer series 1 hall indicator and lantern (vertical)

Classic

Classic is an Otis hall fixture made in the 2000s, commonly known as Series 2. Classic call stations are flush mount with round metal buttons, with either an illuminating halo or a small light in the center. Lanterns are also flush mount, with either round or triangular arrows, and a square green vacuum fluorescent indicator.

Classic does not include car fixtures; rather, Classic hall fixtures are paired with either Standard or Luxury car fixtures.

Classic call station
Classic vertical hall indicator with round lantern

Standard

Standard, commonly known as Series 5, was Otis's standard fixture for much of the 2000s and into the early 2010s, succeeding Series 1. Standard hall fixtures were introduced in 2003 with Series 5 NEL, followed by the car fixtures in 2005. It has the same round metal buttons as Classic, usually with red lights.

Standard car fixtures are very common, and incorporate a digital indicator with curved sides, and "egg" lanterns that look similar to Schindler HT. Hall fixtures are surface-mounted and metallic, and have a similar shape to the car indicator. Many Otis lifts with Standard do not have Standard hall fixtures, but instead have Classic hall fixtures.

Standard panel indicator
Standard call station
Standard car riding lantern
Standard exterior lantern (rare)
Standard exterior lantern with position indicator (rare)

Luxury

Luxury is an Otis fixture line made from 1990 to 2009, commonly known as Series 3 or Series 4. Luxury car fixtures are fairly common, consisting of a flush wraparound panel with the standard Otis metal buttons and a large digital indicator. The indicator is usually either red LED or a green vacuum fluorescent display (sometimes with yellow arrows showing the direction), but some Elevonic 411 installs have a yellow electroluminescent display. On hydraulic and low-rise traction elevators, Luxury car panels are usually paired with Classic hall fixtures.

Luxury hall fixtures (the fixtures more commonly called Luxury by elevator filmers), however, are quite rare, usually seen only on high-rise installations. Luxury lanterns and call stations are usually surface-mounted and beveled on the sides, though there are some flush-mounted examples as well.

A touch-sensitive variant of Luxury was produced in the early 1990s. This version is extremely rare, with fewer than 10 confirmed examples in North America.

Newer Luxury operating panel
Luxury vacuum fluorescent indicator with yelow arrows
Luxury red LED position indicator

Luxury electroluminescent position indicator

Luxury call station
Luxury hall lantern (white)
Luxury hall fixture chimes

Series 5 NEL

Series 5 NEL, often incorrectly called Series 6, is a very rare fixture produced from 2003 to 2005. It is similar to Standard, but with all of the car fixtures on a black plastic panel. Series 5 NEL is usually paired with Standard hall fixtures, and often has a low-pitched version of the Standard chimes.

Series 5 NEL indicator
Series 5 NEL operating panel

Current standard fixtures

Otis's current fixtures, commonly called either Series 7 or Newer Series 2, were introduced in 2011. It uses the same round metal buttons as previous Otis fixtures, with white or blue lights. Vandal resistant buttons with lights in the center are also used with this fixture line.

These fixtures include the digital lantern from series 1, but in blue or white LED. Its indicator is a white-on-blue negative mode LCD display.

Operating panel with vandal resistant buttons
Operating panel with white lights
Jamb mounted call station (blue)
Negative mode LCD position indicator
Lantern (blue)

White plastic variant

The current Otis fixture line includes a white plastic button whose full face lights up. This button is mostly found in California, as white buttons are currently required for call stations by California codes. These are offered as an option nationwide, and as such are occasionally seen outside California.

This fixture is often incorrectly called "Vanity" as it resembles the original Otis Vanity.

White plastic call station buttons

2010s-2020s modernization fixtures

This is Otis's current fixture line for modernizations, introduced around 2008 and commonly known as Series M2 (flush-mounted) or Series M4 (surface-mounted). It has the standard Otis metal buttons, and is sometimes paired with EPCO OIP lanterns and/or hall indicators.

M2 operating panel (red)
M2/M4 indicator (blue)

Series M4 call station

Vertical M2 indicator with digital lantern

Horizontal M2 floor indicator with triangle lanterns

Vandal resistant mesh M2/M4 lantern (rare)
One EPCO lantern used with Series M4

Series M1

Series M1 is a custom fixture used for modernizing elevators with Series 1.

Series M1 call station
photo: Skivator

Compass/Compass Plus